The Perkins Basic State Grant program, the only dedicated federal funding for CTE, has received modest yet consistent increases since fiscal year (FY) 2018. However, as a result of chronic underinvestment and inflation, the Basic State Grant still remains over $400M below its FY 2004 funding level. The most recent House and Senate proposals for FY 2023 have continued the trend of small but important increases for CTE state grants. The outcome of this year’s midterm elections could have a tremendous impact on the funding outcomes in both FY 2023 and 2024.  

Most recently, Democratic House appropriators have proposed a $45M increase to the Perkins Basic State Grant program, while  Senate Democrats proposed $60M. To avert a government shutdown, Congress passed a continuing resolution (CR) until December 16 to allow additional time to negotiate a final appropriations package after the results of the midterm election are finalized. This does not mean, however, that a package is guaranteed by this date—and the initial levels included in the House and Senate bills are not binding on final decisions.  

Should Republicans gain control of the House or Senate, they may be motivated to wait until the 118th Congress is sworn in so that they can assume more control over the budgeting process. Many on Capitol Hill have expressed optimism that a deal will be struck before the end of the year though because of the retirements of appropriations committee leaders Sen. Richard Shelby (R-AL) and Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT). They may be motivated to end their Senate careers on a high note by passing appropriations bills prior to the end of the current session. Otherwise, any changes to the balance of power will impact negotiations over top-level funding, as Republicans traditionally have supported more conservative levels of domestic discretionary funding. 

No matter the election results and the timing of the final FY 2023 package, the appropriations process requires bipartisan compromise. ACTE has asked Congress to increase the Perkins Basic State Grant program by $200M in FY 2023 and will continue working with Congress and the Biden Administration to secure bolder investments in FY 2024. To learn more or to find ways that you can advocate for federal investments in CTE, please contact ACTE’s Government Relations Manager, Zach Curtis (zcurtis@acteonline.org). 

Today, ACTE released a new fact sheet titled “What is Work-based Learning?” describing the full range of work-based learning (WBL) experiences offered through CTE.

WBL enables students to learn about careers, build connections with industry professionals, and develop and practice technical, academic and employability skills needed for career success. It occurs on a continuum, ranging from short-term experiences like workplace tours and guest speakers to more sustained activities like internships and apprenticeships. This fact sheet describes and visualizes stages of the WBL continuum, including awareness, exploration, preparation and participation, and defines common WBL learning experiences.

We encourage ACTE members and CTE advocates to share this resource with students and families, education and workforce leaders, and policymakers to improve the public’s understanding of WBL and the many applied, real-world opportunities offered by CTE.

ACTE’s Public Policy Department is pleased to announce that the 2022 Baird-English Advocate of the Year and ACTE Policymaker of the Year Awards are now open for submissions.

Nominations for both awards can be submitted by any ACTE member, the ACTE Public Policy Department, members of the ACTE Board of Directors or state associations. 

The Baird-English Advocate of the Year Award is presented annually by ACTE to an ACTE member who has worked to enhance CTE in federal policy through advocacy. For the Baird-English Advocate of the Year, nomination materials should include:

• Letter of introduction (500 words or less) summarizing the following: 
• A short biography of the applicant
• Advocacy actions the nominee has taken in the past year to advance CTE in federal policy, including but not limited to: program/school visits set up for policymakers and/or staff; emails, letters and calls to policymakers and/or staff; meetings with policymakers and/or their staff; letters to the editor or op-eds on CTE topics submitted to local, state or national media
• Significant accomplishments related to CTE advocacy actions that have contributed to the improvement, promotion, development and progress of federal CTE policy, and supporting documents for those actions. For example, newspaper articles, news videos or pictures of Members of Congress or their staff on school visits or office visits, copies or internet links to op-eds or letters to the editor.

Note: The Baird-English Award is not limited to one recipient. 

ACTE’s Public Policy Department awards the Policymaker of the Year Award to nationally recognized policymakers who have made contributions of national significance to CTE.

For the ACTE Policymaker of the Year, you must include: 

• a cover letter stating the nominee’s qualifications for the award 
• supporting information listing significant CTE federal policy accomplishments 
• other appropriate accomplishments related to CTE 

Note: Individual ACTE members submitting a nomination must have the endorsement of an association, agency, group, several individuals or a combination of these. 

Nominations for the awards are due by January 1. Nominations can be submitted through the respective ACTE Awards Portal links above. The winners will be announced and honored during the 2023 National Policy Seminar.

If you have any questions about the awards, please contact ACTE Media Relations and Advocacy Associate, Jori Houck, at jhouck@acteonline.org.

Today, the U.S. Department of Education released data from states’ Consolidated Annual Report (CAR) submissions for program year 2020-2021 – the first year that states reported performance data under Perkins V. 

Today’s release includes CTE participant numbers, CTE concentrator numbers and CTE concentrator performance on the Perkins accountability indicators, including the secondary program quality indicators new under Perkins V. The data can be accessed on the Perkins Collaborative Research Network in several formats:

• National and state-level summaries showing funding distribution, CTE participant data, CTE concentrator enrollment by Career Cluster, and CTE concentrator performance data
• A new dashboard of national- and state-level performance data, which can be filtered by gender, race/ethnicity, special populations and Career Clusters
• The Perkins Data Explorer, which enables users to generate custom reports on CTE participation, concentration and performance

We’ve shared several takeaways from this dataset below. Please note that national-level average performance should be interpreted with caution, owing to differences in how states define each indicator, particularly for the placement, postsecondary credential attainment and secondary program quality indicators:

• In 2020-21, there were almost 12 million participants in CTE nationwide, including 8.3 million secondary CTE participants and 3.5 million postsecondary CTE participants.
• In 2020-21, there were about 3 million secondary CTE concentrators and close to 1.9 million postsecondary CTE concentrators nationwide.
• The top four Career Clusters among secondary concentrators were Health Science; Agriculture, Food & Natural Resources; Business Management & Administration; and Arts, A/V Technology & Communications.
• The top four Career Clusters among postsecondary concentrators were Health Science; Business Management & Administration; Law, Public Safety, Corrections & Security; and Information Technology.
• The average four-year graduation rate for secondary concentrators across the nation was 96%.

In addition to exercising caution when interpreting national averages, please also remember that COVID-19 may have impacted data for the 2020-21 program year, particularly in regards to performance on academic assessments and secondary program quality indicators such as recognized postsecondary credential attainment and work-based learning participation.

We encourage CTE educators to explore their state’s disaggregated data, and ACTE will be digging into this data and will share additional findings and takeaways with the CTE community soon.

Congress is nearing the final stretch of the recess period before the midterm elections. If you have the opportunity to attend a campaign event in the next week or two, this is a great chance to get some “face time” with the candidates in your area and inquire about their understanding and support of CTE. After the election, a brief but busy “lame-duck” session will be held before the formal swearing-in of the 118th Congress, where the bulk of the focus will be on fiscal year (FY) 2023 appropriations bills. ACTE will be providing you with the resources you need to effectively develop relationships with new Members of Congress and urge them to support policies that will help advance high-quality CTE for all learners. In the meantime, here is a brief update from Washington:

• Student Debt Relief Update: On October 20, the Department of Education formally opened the application for student loan borrowers to obtain up to $20,000 in student loan debt forgiveness. However, the program has been temporarily paused from processing debt discharges after the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals issued a stay of the program until it hears further testimony. Visit the Department of Education’s Federal Student Aid (FSA) website for further information.

• National Student Clearinghouse Research Center Releases Postsecondary Enrollment Data: On October 17, the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center released postsecondary enrollment data covering the fall 2022 semester. Key findings revealed that overall postsecondary enrollment is down, but community colleges are continuing to see strong enrollment numbers boosted by increasing numbers of matriculating students. You can read the full report here.

• Election Watch 2022: State Ballot Measures: State ballot measures are important components of the voting process in which citizens are provided the opportunity to voice their input on various legislation topics, including education. Gathered using the Statewide Ballot Measures Database by the National Conference of State Legislatures, ACTE has compiled some of the education-related state ballot measures that will be determined by voters in November. Read more about the state ballot measures that could impact CTE here.

• National Science Foundation Launches Workforce Program for Emerging Technology Jobs: The National Science Foundation (NSF) has announced a grant opportunity to fund partnerships between workforce development entities and organizations with expertise in emerging technologies. The Experiential Learning for Emerging and Novel Technologies (ExLENT) program will provide $30 million to increase access to career pathways in emerging technology fields, such as advanced manufacturing, advanced wireless, artificial intelligence, biotechnology, quantum information science, semiconductors and microelectronics. Read more about the grant here.

On November 8, voters will take to the polls to determine the new look of the next Congress by casting their votes for 34 Senate and all 435 House seats. Currently, Democrats hold a slim majority in both the House and Senate, making this election highly consequential in terms of the potential for swings of party control in each chamber. Retirements will also play a large factor in the future composition of the next Congress – 32 House members (20 Democrats and 12 Republicans) and 6 Senators (5 Republicans and 1 Democrat) are not running for reelection this year. 

These retirements will not only influence the balance of power, but they also will cause a significant shift in representation on the education and appropriations committees that directly impact CTE. For example, Sen. Richard Burr (R-NC), the top Republican on the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP), is retiring. He is likely to be replaced by either Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) or Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA). The spot for top Democrat on the HELP committee is also up for grabs, as Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA), the current HELP Committee chair is slated to replace retiring Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) as chair or ranking member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, depending on the party that controls the Senate. It is expected that Sen. Bernie Sanders (D-VT) will then take Sen. Murray’s place leading the HELP Committee Democrats.  

In addition to new Democratic leadership on the Senate Appropriations Committee, Republican leadership on the committee will also experience changes due to retirements. Sen. Richard Shelby (R-AL), the top Republican on the full committee, and Sen. Roy Blunt, the top Republican on the Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, are both retiring. Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) is next in line to replace Sen. Shelby based on seniority, while Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) is the most senior Republican in line to replace Sen. Blunt. That said, all committee assignments and leadership positions are subject to a variety of factors and are not always based on seniority.  

The bipartisan congressional CTE Caucuses will also suffer losses due to retirements from longtime CTE advocates Sen. Rob Portman (R-OH) and Rep. Jim Langevin (D-RI). ACTE is grateful for their valuable contributions to the CTE community and wishes them all the best in their future endeavors. Moving forward, each caucus will soon choose replacements to serve as co-chairs. We will keep you updated with more information as it becomes available. Overall, the House CTE Caucus will lose 11 members due to retirement, making it critical for ACTE members to recruit their newly elected Members of Congress to join. 

Starting next week, ACTE’s Election Watch 2022 will preview federal policy issues critical to the community that may be impacted by this year’s midterm elections. If you have any questions, please reach out to ACTE’s Government Relations Manager, Zach Curtis (zcurtis@acteonline.org).  

COVID-19 Relief Spending: Recently, FutureEd analyzed COVID-19 relief spending plans from a nationwide sample of 5,000 K-12 school districts and charter organizations and conducted additional research with the 100 largest K-12 school districts in the United States about their plans for Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER III) aid. The following summarize key trends from the report on COVID-19 relief spending plans among K-12 districts:

• Staff numbers: The majority of school districts in the national sample and the largest districts plan to use funds to hire new teachers and pay teachers and other staff.
• Recruitment and retention: Around 20% of school districts in the national sample and 47% of the largest districts are using ESSER funds to recruit and retain teachers.
• Financial incentives: Roughly 33% of the largest districts are using funds for additional pay and stipends to help with teacher retention, and 10% of districts in the sample are offering retention bonuses.
• More hours: One-third of the largest districts are dedicating relief funding to pay teachers a stipend for working additional hours.
• Professional development: About 43% of school districts in the national sample plan to use relief funding for professional development.

Post-Pandemic Practitioner Reflections: Last month, the Coalition on Adult Basic Education (COABE) released the latest issue in their peer-reviewed, practitioner-focused themed journal on adult education. This issue features nine articles with reflections from and innovations used by adult education practitioners during the COVID-19 pandemic. Some topics the articles discuss include serving English learners, developing statewide collaboration, devising innovative learning strategies for incarcerated learners and using remote learning to expand access to adult education.

Online Course Enrollment & Completion: A report published by the University of Florida studied the impact of online course enrollment on community college students’ degree completion, with an emphasis on outcomes among traditionally underserved student groups. The author examined 2009-19 transcript data from a high-enrollment community college and found that students who enrolled in some, but not all, online courses were more likely to earn their associate degree and/or bachelor’s degree. In contrast, students who enrolled in all online courses were less likely to earn a degree. Both trends held true for Black, Hispanic and low-income student groups.

Online Learner Perspectives: In the spring of 2022, Wiley University Services surveyed 2,500 high school graduates nationwide that had been enrolled, were currently enrolled or planned to enroll in a fully online undergraduate or graduate degree or certificate program in the next 12 months to better understand online learners’ motivations, preferences and outcomes. The following highlight key findings from the report:

• One in three respondents hadn’t considered an online program until the COVID-19 pandemic, with most of these respondents being young adults.
• Online learners’ top motivations to apply to an online program included affordability (59%), program completion time (33%) and accreditation (32%).
• Although most online learners prefer asynchronous and fully online programs, of the 18% of online learners who must complete lab work for their program of study, the majority stated that they would prefer to complete these courses in person.
• About 36% of current online learners and recent graduates reported a salary increase, 26% began a new job, 22% switched careers, 20% were promoted, 19% started their careers and 18% have more responsibilities at work.
• About 60% of online learners are open to pursuing an alternative credential, including trade credentials, industry certifications and non-credit options such as micro-credentials and digital badges.

ACTE’s recently updated “What is a Credential?” fact sheet defines different types of credentials, including alternative credentials, to help CTE advocates and stakeholders better understand the credential landscape.